


Can't Relate

by mamodewberry



Series: NLAverse [10]
Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: America is Charming?, Attempts At Socializing in RL, College, Detroit, Friendship, Gen, NLA Canon, University, Yuuri is Unhelpful
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-01
Updated: 2019-04-01
Packaged: 2019-12-30 17:28:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,060
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18319919
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mamodewberry/pseuds/mamodewberry
Summary: Sometimes we have realizations that something in our lives need to change. And sometimes you try to change and it doesn't work out and things are fine just the way they are.





	Can't Relate

**Author's Note:**

  * For [louciferish](https://archiveofourown.org/users/louciferish/gifts).



> This is for @Lou from Discord for our Zamboni Crack challenge! Socializing in RL was the prompt and I also pulled Hot Dogs as a secondary prompt. When I got the first prompt, I immediately thought of Phichit! But then I got to thinking that he's actually more sociable than Yuuri, thus Yuuri gets pulled into his hijanks.
> 
> It's not super cracky, but I do think it's funny :); 
> 
> Thanks to @gabapple for beta-ing!

Phichit and Yuuri closed the group chat with Leo and Guang-Hong. It was another successful Friday night of gaming online, and Phichit and Leo had the top scores of the four of them as usual. 

Whenever they shut down for the night, the room went deathly silent. The mashing of buttons and grunts ceased, and even though though their American and Chinese friends were hundreds of miles away, they could feel the chatter through the chat, but when they all logged out…

Were Phichit and Yuuri becoming those college students that never left the apartment unless they absolutely had to? They’d gone to a party or two; one was probably even a frat party, though, that was more so Phichit could take photos for Instagram and have some footage for his application to join the newspaper club. They also talked to their fellow club skaters at the rink, but didn’t do anything with them outside of practice or competitions.

Was that wrong?

Was there more to life?

“Yuuri…” Phichit ventured, hand coming up to his chin, contemplative, yet bracing himself for his own suggestion. “I think we need to… socialize more in RL.”

Yuuri looked up from stowing away the controllers like Phichit just asked him to kill a man.

“I know, I know, it sounds crazy. But what if there’s more going on outside our apartment that we could be enjoying?”

“For me or you?” Yuuri grumbled. 

“Hey, I have club meetings and study groups, but that doesn’t really count.  _ Us _ , Yuuri. Imagine… life outside our apartment…”

“Isn’t there a song about that?”

“I’m glad you pay attention to my playlists, Yuuri. But we are not puppets and actually have legs, so, we should think of something.”

“To socialize?” Yuuri groaned. 

“Yes. And the easiest way to do so is with food.” 

 

Inviting a group out to lunch was the plan, but the issue then became _who_ to invite to their new social experiment. 

Yuuri was no help. He said he didn’t know anybody, despite Phichit reminding him there were several humans in his classes. So it was up to Phichit to decide on candidates. 

The students Phichit knew from study groups and projects were fine, but they weren’t the type to go hang out together unless they had to. Theatre classmates would be more willing, but they would be too much for his more antisocial Japanese friend. This wasn’t just for Phichit’s sake! 

Which left their fellow skate club and rinkmates. As far as Phichit knew, neither of them had beef with anyone of them, male or female, so why hadn’t they tried to hang out before? 

Shy and lazy? Probably. But not today!

Determined, and with Yuuri straggling behind him, Phichit approached a clique of three boys. While they’d never exchanged more than a casual greeting and occupying professional space, Phichit knew a little about each of them - Justin was from California and majoring in art (which meant Yuuri probably saw more of him than he admitted); Cameron was a bred local and attended the community college, major unknown; Jorge liked spam and not of the annoying junk mail variety. 

“Good afternoon, gentleman!” Phichit greeted with a wave, flashing a grin, “Would you be interested in joining Yuuri and I here for a feast at Coney Island? Our treat.”

The offer was tempting, Phichit could tell, but they did seem suspicious that the quiet Asians would suddenly invite them out. 

“I like hot dogs,” said Jorge.

Of course he did. 

 

Together they agreed on Friday after classes, which hopefully would give them enough time to beat the rush. If not, they’d survive, he assured Yuuri.

“Can’t we just get takeout instead? Invite them to our place?”

“But you love Coney’s and that would defeat the purpose.”

“I technically shouldn’t be eating it. Coach will be pissed if he finds out.”

“How is takeout any different?”

Yuuri didn’t have an argument.  

A long week was ahead of them for sure. 

 

Friday came and Phichit made sure that he and Yuuri were the first ones there. Like expected, the trio arrived together, driving a beat up Dodge pick-up. 

Coney Island was an iconic staple in Detroit, and the charming retro diner interior that stubbornly stayed in place was proof. The menu was so generic; the font even looked like comic sans. So American. Phichit loved it. 

The group of five (possibly) friends found a seat and all ordered either a regular hot dog with a side of chili fries, or a chili dog with a side of regular fries. Phichit went the extra mile and added cheese to both his dog and fries on top of the chili. It was glorious. Yuuri tried to go plain on both, but eventually succumbed to the peer pressure.

While they waited for their names to be called for pick up, Justin, Cameron, and Jorge asked if either of them were planning on going to the football game tomorrow. 

“No, we were going to play-”

Phichit elbowed Yuuri. “Not really  _ our thing _ , but maybe. Rival team playing?” 

“Duh!” they laughed. 

Which then prompted the three of them to quiz about all the other sports teams Wayne State University had to offer. It was strange how they went on about the sports that involved balls like the very activity they came to the rink to do wasn’t one. Who were their coaches again? 

One by one they got up to get their two thousand calorie dinners. It was a greasy, beany, cheesy, display all in one place. 

“So, the girls at the rink, huh?” asked Justin. 

“Sarah is smokin’,” Cameron added, a hand on his chest. 

Oh boy. If they couldn’t get a reaction to ball sports,  _ of course _ the next thing would be girls. After that was what, cars? “Ah, well… y’know,” Phichit laughed it off.

Yuuri very pointedly concentrated on his five remaining fries and did not provide assistance. 

It was a long hour and some change filled with dodging questions and BSing answers where Phichit could. If Yuuri could have at least pretended he wanted to be there and been an active participant, things could have smoothed over better. 

They tried. 

In the end, the experiment was a success in at least one way; Phichit and Yuuri confirmed why they weren’t sociable and they became at peace with it once more. 


End file.
